Ben Stokes is a ‘freak’ and can fire England to victory this summer, Keaton Jennings tells talkSPORT 2

Jennings broke into the England international set-up last year and scored a century on debut

Keaton Jennings has labelled Ben Stokes a ‘freak’ and has backed the England all-rounder to fire England to success in ODI and Test action this summer.

Jennings, speaking with Russ Hargreaves on talkSPORT 2’s Sportsday, exploded onto the international scene last year, scoring a century on debut for England in India.

And with another busy summer of cricket on the way, Jennings hopes his Durham team-mate can continue his hot vein of form with the Champions Trophy plus series against West Indies and South Africa on the horizon.

Stokes became only the second Englishman after Kevin Pietersen to score a century in the IPL this week, thumping 103 for Rising Pune Supergiant off 63 deliveries and Jennings is hoping for more of the same for England.

Jennings told talkSPORT 2: “His success and his rewards for it hasn’t come off the back of luck, he’s one of the hardest working blokes that I know, really proud of him and really chuffed for him and hopefully he can finish off the little period in the IPL really positively and then come back and win games of cricket for England.

“Stoksey is a bit of a freak, he hits the ball miles, he catches flies, he runs quickly, he’s strong, he’s fit and his potential is huge.

“When you play with a guy and play with a guy on the same surface and you face the same bowlers, he looks like he’s batting on a completely different surface.

“It’s brilliant for him to have done what he’s done, I really hope he can push forward and really make some huge impact this summer in both the Champions Trophy and the Test series that follows.”

You can hear live and exclusive coverage of the IPL throughout the tournament on talkSPORT 2